After the battle, the bar was a complete mess.
The floor had been split open by sword strikes. Tables and chairs lay overturned. Broken glass and spilled liquor covered the ground.
That was only the spiritual pressure released before Bankai—
and it had nearly destroyed the entire bar.
"So… should I call you Ren Kuro, or Death?" Rayleigh asked as he slid a glass of liquor over to him.
"Ren Kuro. That's my real name. 'Death' is just a codename." Ren Kuro smiled as he answered.
"So that power just now… that's an ability unique to Shinigami?" Rayleigh's gaze drifted to the Zanpakutō at Gin Ichimaru's waist. His eyelid twitched slightly. The shock from that fight still hadn't fully faded.
"More or less." Ren Kuro drained the liquor in one go, then said seriously, "It's a good thing I stopped him in time. Otherwise… you really would have died."
Back in the battle of Karakura Town, even Aizen in his third fusion stage had nearly been killed instantly by the poison hidden within Kamishini no Yari.
At that point, Aizen possessed enough power to crush the entire Gotei Thirteen with ease. He was practically godlike.
And yet even a body like that couldn't withstand a poison that dissolved cells on contact.
That alone showed how terrifying Kamishini no Yari truly was.
And poison wasn't even the only threat.
Its extension and retraction speed could reach five hundred times the speed of sound.
In other words—
once the blade's tip was pointed at you, your life was already over.
Ren Kuro did not believe Rayleigh's Observation Haki could track something moving five hundred times faster than sound.
"…Now I understand why Vice Admiral Onigumo was killed instantly."
A bitter smile appeared on Rayleigh's face. Even he had nearly been finished off. Onigumo, who was clearly weaker, never had a chance.
"But I'm still shocked by one thing."
"You really didn't know Haki."
"Rayleigh-san, that's exactly why we came here." Ren Kuro grinned. "And it's not just me. Even Gin is interested in the two colors of Haki."
"Is that so?" Rayleigh laughed heartily. "Then this old man is honored. To think I'd be teaching Haki to two fighters on the level of Admirals."
After that fight, he had already begun treating Ren Kuro and Gin as true equals.
No—
to be more precise, Rayleigh felt they were even more frightening than Marine Admirals.
At least when facing an Admiral, he could still fight calmly and evenly.
Gin, on the other hand—
could kill him in moments.
"That silver-haired kid doesn't want a drink?" Shakky held out a glass of liquor, though she didn't dare approach Gin too closely. The pressure from his near-Bankai release had left a shadow in her heart she still couldn't forget.
"He's probably not interested in alcohol," Ren Kuro said, shaking his head.
"Then what is he interested in? Swordsmanship?"
"I'm not really sure."
Ren Kuro spread his hands helplessly.
"Gin Ichimaru is a mystery. No one in this world can truly figure out what he's thinking."
For revenge, Gin had willingly spent more than a century lurking beside Aizen, smiling and laughing all the while. Then, only after the entire Gotei Thirteen had fallen, he struck without hesitation and attempted to kill him. If not for the Hōgyoku, Gin might actually have succeeded.
To still have the courage to attack Aizen after he merged with the Hōgyoku—
that kind of nerve and resolve was beyond ordinary people.
And to spend more than a hundred years smiling beside a monster like that?
Gin's patience, cunning, and depth were all far beyond normal understanding.
Other than Gin himself—
no one could truly understand him.
"A quiet man with Admiral-level strength… what a strange fellow." Rayleigh gave a helpless laugh. "Are all Shinigami like this?"
"There's also the creepy drug-feeding mad scientist, the masochistic lunatic who begs people to cut him, the cold pretty boy who's always acting cool, and the scheming guy who looks like he's in permanent show-off mode…"
A few familiar figures flashed through Ren Kuro's mind, and he shrugged in resignation.
"…"
Rayleigh's heart gave a violent twitch.
He had absolutely no idea what Ren Kuro was talking about.
Was this one a weirdo too?
Rayleigh and Shakky exchanged a look and, without saying a word, both nodded.
"Ahem. Ren Kuro… I can provide you with information related to Devil Fruits." Rayleigh coughed lightly and decisively changed the subject. "As for the next three months, I'll do everything I can to teach you Haki."
"Three months?" Ren Kuro's smile brightened. "That should be enough."
Once he mastered the two colors of Haki, his strength would rise by leaps and bounds.
And from then on, even against Logia users, he would finally have a real chance.
"Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
As the glasses clinked together—
a friendship was forged between Ren Kuro and Rayleigh.
Time flew.
In the blink of an eye—
three months passed.
During those three months, Rayleigh taught Ren Kuro far more than just the two colors of Haki. He also gave him lessons in navigation and various survival skills, all so he could handle whatever unexpected dangers the sea might throw at him.
"Gin Ichimaru, we've gathered enough information."
Ren Kuro sat on the edge of the harbor at Grove 13, leisurely fishing.
"It's time for us to leave."
"To search for Devil Fruits?" Gin narrowed his eyes meaningfully, that fox-like smile curving at the corners of his mouth. "Ren Kuro… looks like you can't wait to summon the other captains."
"Every summon costs the energy of ten Devil Fruits." Ren Kuro gave a helpless shrug. "That's not exactly easy. Without enough information, who knows where I'm supposed to find that many?"
He didn't just want to summon the entire Gotei Thirteen.
He also wanted the Visored—
and even Squad Zero.
To summon everyone, he would need an unimaginable number of Devil Fruits.
Which meant one thing:
their highest priority right now was to obtain as many Devil Fruits as possible.
Just then, as the two of them talked, a seagull flew overhead.
A newspaper from Marine Headquarters fluttered down into Ren Kuro's hands.
"Hm? A paper? Did something big happen?"
Curious, Ren Kuro unfolded it.
But the moment he saw the headline—
his expression changed.
"Fisher Tiger Rampages Through the Holy Land — Turmoil Erupts in Mary Geoise!"